Adjustable chair



April 12, 1960 H. L. LEVI 2,932,344

ADJUSTABLE CHAIR Filed March 4. 1958 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR I fians/ Lew A ORNEY April 12, 1960 H. L. LEVI 2,932,344

ADJUSTABLE CHAIR Filed March 4. 1958 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR M adv/( a. ZI'Z'ZRNEYS p i 2,1960 H. LEV. 2,932,344

' ADJUSTABLE CHAIR Filed March 4, 1958 s Sheets-Sheet s INVENTOR.

United States Patent ADJUSTABLE CHAIR Hans L. Levi, Dohhs Ferry, N.Y., assignor to Murphy Door Bed Company, Inc., New York, N.Y., a corpora tion of New York Application March 4, 1358, Serial No. 719,106

7 Claims. {Cl.'155--88) This invention relates to an adjustable chair and more particularly to a chair which can be adjusted for-either an upright position of normal dining height or for a reclining position having a lower, more comfortable lounging height by the manual adjustment of any one of its four intercoupled legs.

The chair of the present invention is comprised generally of a frame having a back rest and a seat portion, a pair of front legs and a pair of rear legs, both pairs being pivotally attached to said seat portion and being intercoupled so that by swinging any one of the legs in a fore and aft direction the said pairs will swing oppositely rela tive to each other. In such a manner the front pair is swingable from a forwardly extending position to a rearwardly extending position, the rear pair being swingable at the same time from a rearwardly extending position to a forwardly extending position. The chair is designed to have an upright position when the rear legs are in their rearwardly extending position, and by swinging the front pair of legs to the rear, thereby causing the rear pair to swing to the front as described above, the chair is caused to assume a lower reclining position.

It is important that a lounging chair should have its seat situated closer to the floor than an upright chair so that the users legs can be stretched out and a relaxed position assumed. If the seat were maintained at the same height as for the upright position and the rear part of the seat lowered to provide a reclining position, the :user would not be able to stretch his legs out sufficiently, and in addition the front edge of the seat would bear against the underside of the users thighs and tend to be uncomfortable rather than relaxing.

Another feature of the present chair, in one embodiment of the invention, is that one pair of legs is longer than the other pair, and it is therefore unnecessary to lift the chair off the floor to shift the legs from one position rto the other, and it is even unnecessary to reach down and grab the legs by hand to effect a change in their relartive position. By merely pulling the chair in a generally horizontal direction so that it will pivot upon the longer ;pair of legs, the shorter pair of legs will be caused to :swing between the longer legs and the attitude of the chair changed from upright to reclining or vice versa as desired. i

The latter feature is advantageous for women, children :and persons who are unable to overexert themselves physically, as well as those who are unable to bend over .to the extent which would otherwise be required to adjust the chair legs.

It is thus apparent that this chair has a wide range of uses in thehome as well as elsewhere. It can be used in its upright position for a dining chair, bridge chair and the like, whereas in its reclining position it affords a corn: fol-table chair for reading, watching television and the like. It is of simple, sturdy construction and easy to adjust for an upright or a reclining position.

. vThis chair may be constructed of any type of material ice such as metal, wood and the like, and may be constructed with arm rests and other usual features if so desired.

The inherent versatility of this design affords a chair which is ideal for the small house or apartment wherein a shortage of chairs is frequently felt during certain social gatherings. With this chair, the dining chairs can double as conversational chairs without requiring the users to sit in upright uncomfortable positions.

The chair also offers great possibilities of use for banquets, lecture halls and the like.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an adjustable chair which can be manually adjusted for an upright or a reclining position by the posi tioning of its four intercoupled legs by the manual adjustment of any one of them.

It is another object to provide an adjustable chair having a longer pair of legs and a shorter pair of legs, both pairs being pivotally attached to said chair and intercoupled with one another so as to exchange their relative positions by appropriate movement of any one of the legs to change the chair from an upright higher position to a reclining lower position.

Fig. 8 is an elevation view of the type of linkage means An additional object is to provide a chair having two pairs of pivotally attached legs, one pair being longer than the other pair so that the chair seat may be adjusted for either a lower reclining or a higher upright position by pivoting the chair upon the longer pair of legs without having to lift the entire chair off the floor or manually touch the legs to do so.

Other objects and features of this invention will become apparent in the following description and in the drawings in which:

Fig. l is a side elevation view of the chair as adjusted for an upright position, with the pivotal attachment of the legs shown in phantom;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation view of the chair as adjusted for a reclining position, with the pivotal attachment of the legs shown in phantom;

Fig. 3' is a plan view of the pivotal attachment of one adjacent set of legs;

Fig. 4 is an isometric view of the pivotal attachment of one adjacent set of legs, showing the limit means in phantom;

Fig. 5 shows an elevaiton view of another linkage means;

Fig. 6 is a plan view of the linkage means of Fig. 5;

Fig 7 is an inverted isometric view of another embodiment of the linkage means; and

Fig. 8 is an elevation view of the type of linkage means shown in Fig. 7

Referring to Fig. l, the present chair has a frame 10 comprised of a back rest portion 11 and a seat portion 12, each having a cushion 13 and 14 respectively. 'Transversely disposed on the underside of said seat portion near the middle of the latter is a pair of axles 15 and 16, the former being parallel to and to the rear of the latter. Each of said axles is journaled on its respective ends to bracket members 17 (only one shown) which are attached by any conventional means, such as wood screws 18 to the opposite sides of said seat portion 12 of frame 10 (see also Figs. 3 and 4). t

A first pair of leg members 19 (only one shown) are aiiixed near their respective upper ends 21 to the forward axle 16 near the respective ends of the latter. These leg members are swingable on the said axle 16 from a predetermined forwardly extending position as shown in Fig. 1 to a predetermined rearwardly extending position as shown in Fig. 2 and may for greater strength be interconnected by a brace 23. Limit means in the said forwardly extending position is provided by the fiat upper face 24 on each of said leg members bearing up against the horizontal forwardly disposed .extension25 on the respective bracket members (only one shown).

In the said rearwardly extending position, limit means is provided by downwardly and rearwardly depending flange 26 on each of said bracket members which bears against the rear surface 27 of the upper part 28 of each of said leg members.

A second pair of leg members 29 (only one shown) are affixed near their respective upper ends 31 to the rearward axle 15 near the respective ends of the latter so as to be outward of each of the first pair of leg members 19. This second pair of leg members 29 are swingable on the said rearward axle 15 from a predetermined rearwardly extending position as shown in Fig. 1 to a predetermined forwardly extending position as shown in Fig. 2.

In a similar fashion, limit means is provided in the latter said rearwardly extending position by the fiat'upper face 33 on each of said leg members 29 bearing up against the horizontal rearwardly disposed extension 34 on the respective bracket member. In the forwardly extending position of the latter said leg members, limit means is provided by the downwardly and forwardly depending flange 35 on each of said bracket members which bears against the forward surface 36 of the upper part 37 of each of said leg members.

As shown in Fig. 4, the oppositely extending horizontal extensions 25, 34 are laterally offset from one another, as are the depending flanges 26, 35.

Attached to each axle 15 and 16 is a gear means 38 and 39 respectively which intermesh with'one another and thus the rotation of one axle in one direction, e.g., counterclockwise, will cause rotation of the other axle in the opposite directions, i.e. clockwise. In this fashion, with the legs arranged as shown in Fig. 1 with the said first pair of leg members 19 in their forwardly extending position and the said second pair of leg members 29 in their rearwardly extending position, manually swinging the said first pair of leg members to their rearwardly extending position as shown in Fig. 2 will cause the corresponding opposite rotation of said second pair of leg members to their forwardly extending position.

The said second pair of leg members 29 are purposely made longer than the said first pair of leg members 19, and since the chair is constructed to be in an upright position when the legs are arranged as shown in Fig. 1, when the longer legs are swung to their forwardly .extending position as just described, this causes the chair seat to assume a lower, reclining position as shown in Fig. 2.

It is apparent, as aforementioned, that by moving the chair in a generally horizontal direction, either frontward or backward, while permitting the chair to pivot upon the longer .pair of legs, the upright or reclining position can be quickly and easily effected.

Instead of using the gear means described above, it is apparent that other mechanical linkage means can be employed to effect the corresponding opposite rotation of the two axles. In Figs. and 6 is shown one such type of linkage.

Fixedly attached to the pairs of legs 19 and 29 are respective rods 41 and 42 which may be mounted adjacent the respective axles 16 and 15. Disposed between said rods is a reversing lever 43 which is mounted on vertical shaft 44 for reciprocal horizontal rotation and vertical movement. The latter shaft is attached on its upper end 45 to the chair seat 12 by any conventional means.

Connecting rods 46 and 47 are attached between opposite ends 43, 49 of the reversing lever 43 and the respective rods 41 and 42. The attachment at both ends of each connecting rod should be one that permits lateral motion of the rod, such as a ball and socket joint 50. The reversing lever is biased downwardly as viewed in Fig. 5 by coil spring 51. 1

When the first pair of chair legs 19 are swung to their rearward position as shown in dotted lines .in Fig. .5, rod 41 is likewise moved rearwardly to position A and such motion is transmitted by the connecting rod 46 to rotate the reversing lever 43 in a counterclockwise direction as viewed in Fig. 6 to its position shown in dotted lines therein. This rotation causes a corresponding forward pull on connecting rod 47 which consequently moves rod 42 forward and moves the second pair of chair legs 29 to their forward position.

As the legs are interchanged as described the reversing lever moves downwardly on shaft 44 under the urging of spring 51 to prevent binding of the linkage. Similarly, when the legs are returned to their former positions, an upward force is applied to the reversing lever by the upward motion of the respective rods 41 and 42.

Limit means is provided for the first pair of chair legs 19 when in their aforementioned rearward position by downwardly and rearwardly depending flange 26 on each of the bracket members 17 which are identical in shape and disposition to the bracket members described above for the embodiment shown in Figs. 1-4. In such latter position, each flange 26 bears against the rear surface 27 of the upper part 28 of each leg member 19. Similarly, limit means is provided for the second pair of chair legs 29 when in their said forward position by downwardly and forwardly depending flange 35 on each of the bracket members 17 which bears against the forward surface 36 of the upper part 37 of each of the latter leg members 29.

Likewise bracket extensions 25, 34 provide limiting positions for flat upper faces 24, 33 of the pairs of legs 29, 19 when the latter are in their forward and rearward positions respectively.

Another embodiment of the invention is shown in Figs. 7 and 8. Disposed on the underside of the chair seat portion 12 along opposite sides (one shown) thereof are a pair of elongated bracket members 52 which are aifixed to the seat portion 12 by means of wood :screws 54 or the like. Each bracket member has a downwardly facing central wedge-shaped portion 55 constituted by a pair of inclined surfaces 56, 57 which may be of uneven length joined together at their lower ends 58 and connected to respective horizontal bracket extensions 59, 60 at their spaced upper ends 61 by short vertical sections 62. The rearwardly disposed surface 56 is at a greater angle to the horizontal (i.e. to the seat port on 12 than the forwardly disposed surface 57. Pependmg from opposite side edges 63, 64 of each extension 59, 60, and adjacent the corresponding vertical sections '62, are a pair of opposed ears or flanges 65, -66 which receive the inboard upper end portion 67 of one of the legs 68, the latter being pivotally secured thereto by bolt 69 or the like as shown.

Each pair of legs 70 (only one pair shown) is connected together by a lateral brace 71locatcd near the upper ends 72 of the legs 70 and both front and rear pairs of legs may be of the same length lf'deSll'ed. The flat upper surfaces 73 of the rear legs .74 are cut at a greater angle to the longitudinal axis of the legs 74 than the corresponding flat upper surfaces 75 of the front legs 76 so that with both pairs of legs as shown in F g. i.e. the rear legs 74 in their rearwardly extending position, and the front legs 76 in their forwardly extending position, the rear legs 74 will be disposed at a slightly greater angle to the horizontal than the front legs 76, and the chair seat portion 12 will be given a slight rearward slant in the higher upright position. 7 I

As can be seen in Fig. 8 the legs are so mounted that they can be pivoted about their mounting bolts 69 to bring their respective upper leg portions 77 against the adjacent inclined surfaces of the respective wedge-shaped portions 55. The forwardly disposed inclined surface 56 of each such wedge-shaped portion 55 is longer or in any event at a lesser angle to the seat portion 12 than the rearwardly disposed inclined surface 57 I as shown 5 so that when the pairs of legs areswung to position them as just described, so that the rear legs 74 extend forwardly and the front legs 76 ext'end' rearwardly, the front legs 76 will be disposed at a smaller acute angle relative to the chair seat portion 12 than will the rear legs 74 (see legs as shown in dotted lines), and the lower reclining position of the seat portion 12 will be obtained.

The mechanical linkage intercoupling the latter embodiment is provided on at least one .bracket member 52. On the inner edge 78 of the longer inclined surface 56, near the point 79 of the wedge-shaped portion 55, is depending flange 80 on which is pivotally mounted reversing lever 81, so as to be swingable in a generally vertical plane about its own center. Pivotally connected to the ends 82, 83 of lever 81 are respective links 84, 83' which are rotatably afiixed to brackets 86, 87 secured to the respective lateral braces 71. Thus, for example, movement of the rear pair of legs 74 will, through the interconnected link 85, swing the reversing lever 81, and cause link 84 to swing the front pair of legs 76 in an opposite direction from the rear legs 74, in a manner similar to the other mechanical linkage means referred to above. In such fashion the pairs of legs can be swung to adjust the chair for a higher. upright position, to a lowerreclining position as desired.

Spring means 88 is connected at one of its ends 89 to the chair seat portion 12 by means of a bracket 90, which directly underlies the depending flange 80, and at its other end 91 to one end 83 of the reversing lever 81 in order to yieldingly bias the linkage means 92 toward whichever of the two leg positions for which it is adjusted at any given time.

Thus it can be seen that the present invention provides a device meeting the aforementioned prescribed objects and is a device having great novelty and utility.

made to the devices describedand shown herein, without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention.

This application is a continuation-in-part. of patent application Serial No. 516,845, filed June 21, 1955, now abandoned.

I claim:

1. An adjustable chair comprising a seat portion, a pair of elongated bracket members affixed to said seat portion in longitudinal alignment with said sides, each bracket member having a depending centrally disposed wedge-shaped portion constituted by a pair of inclined surfaces disposed in a fore and aft direction respectively and joined together at their lower ends, the forwardly disposed surface being inclined at a greater angle relative to said seat portion than theother of said surfaces, longitudinally extending bracket extensions at opposite ends of each said bracket member, leg members pivotally afiixed to said bracket members adjacent each of said extensions and having respective fiat top surfaces engageable with the respective extensions in a first limiting position, said legs being swingable to a second limiting position in which their respective upper portions engage adjacent inclined surfaces on said bracket members, corresponding respective braces affixed between the front and rear legs to connect them in front and rear pairs, at least one of said bracket members carrying a reversing lever pivotally mounted on said bracket member, respective links each pivotally attached at one end to one of said braces and at the other end to an opposite end of said lever, whereby the pivotal movement of one pair of legs will cause a corresponding opposite pivotal movement of the other pair of legs, said chair being adjustable from a higher upright position when said legs are in their first limiting positions, to a lower reclining position when said legs are in their second limiting positions.

2. An adjustable chair comprising a seat portion, a pair of elongated bracket members affixed to said seat portion in longitudinal alignment with said sides, each bracket member having a depending centrally disposed It is to be understood that certain changes can be "-6 wedge-shaped portion constituted by a pair of inclined surfaces disposed in store and aft direction respectively, the forwardly disposed surface being inclined at a greater angle relative to said seat portion than the other of said surfaces, longitudinally extending bracket extensions at opposite ends of each said bracket member, leg members.

pivotally'afiixed to said bracket members adjacent each of said extensions and having respective fiat top surfaces engageable with the respective extensions in a first limiting position, said legs being swingable to a second limiting position in which their respective upper portions engage adjacent inclined surfaces on said bracket members, correspondingrespective braces afiixed between the front and rear legs to connect them in front and rear pairs, at least one of said bracket members carrying a reversing lever pivotally mounted on'the surface inclined at a lesser angle, respective links each pivotally attached at one end to one of said braces and at the other end to an opposite:

end of said lever, whereby the pivotal movement of one pair of legs will cause a corresponding opposite pivotal movement of the other pair of legs, and spring means interconnecting said seat portion with one end of said lever, said chair being adjustable from. a higher upright position when said legs are in their first limiting positions, to a lower reclining position when said legs are in their second limiting positions. i

.3. An adjustable chair comprising a seat portion, a pair of elongated bracket members afiixed to the underside of said seat portion at opposite sides thereof in longitudinal alignment with said sides, each bracket member. having a depending centrally disposed wedge-shaped portion constituted by a pair of inclined surfaces of un. even length disposed in fore and aft directions respectively and joined together at their lower ends, the for-L wardly disposed surface being longer and inclined at a greater angle relative to said seat portion than the other of said surfaces, longitudinally extending horizontal, bracket extensions at opposite ends of each said bracket: member, vertical sections interconnecting the respective upper ends of said inclined surfaces to the adjacent bracket extensions, leg members pivotally affixed at their upper ends to said bracket members adjacent each of said extensions and having respective fiat top surfaces engageabletwith the respective extensions in a first limiting position, said legs being swingable to a second. limiting position in which their respective upper portions engage adjacent inclined surfaces on said bracket members, corresponding respective braces afiixed between the? front and rear legs to connect them in front and rear' pairs, at least one of said bracket members carrying a. reversing lever pivotally mounted at its center on the" inner edge of the surface inclined at a lesser angle, respective links each pivotally attached at one end to one of said braces and at the other end to an opposite end of said lever, whereby the pivotal movement of one pair of legs will cause a corresponding opposite pivotal movement of the other pair of legs and spring means interconnecting said seat portion with one end of said lever, said chair being adjustable from a higher upright position when said legs are in their first limiting positions, to a lower reclining position when said legs are in their second limiting positions.

4. An adjustable chair comprising a seat portion, a pair of elongated bracket members affixed to the underside of said seat portion at opposite sides thereof in longitudinal alignment with said sides, each bracket member having a depending centrally disposed wedge-shaped portion constituted by a pair of inclined surfaces of uneven length disposed in a fore and aft direction respectively and joined together at their lower ends, the forwardly disposed surface being longer and inclined at a greater angle relative to said seat portion than the other of said surfaces, longitudinally extending horizontal bracket extensions at oppostie ends of each said bracket member, the forwardly disposed extensions being laterally olfset retativetotheirre pectivere rwardly'dispesed extensien vertical sections interconnecting the respective-upper ends of said inclined surfaces to the adjacentbracket extensions, leg members pivotally aifixed at th'eir'upp'er ends to said bracket members adjacent each 'ofs'aidextensions and having "respective angularly disposed flat top surfaces engageable with the respective extensions in a first limiting position, said legs being swingable to a second limiting position in which their respective upper portions engage adjacent inclined surfaces on saidb'racket members,'cor'responding respective braces aflixed between the front and rear legs to connect them in front and rear pairs, at least one of said bracket members carrying a reversing lever pivotally mounted at the center on the inner edge of the surfac'e'inclined at a lesser'angle near tbe'lower end'th'ere'of for rotation in a vertical plane, respective links each pivotally attached at one endto one o d b a an a th oth of said lever, whereby the pivotal movement of one pair of legs will cause a corresponding opposite p'iv'otal movement of the other pair oflegs, and spring means interconnecting said seat portion with one end of said lever, said chair "being adjustable from a higher upright position when said legs are in their 'first limiting positions, to a lower reclining position when said legs are in their second limiting positions.

5. An adjustable chair comprising a seat portion, a pair of elongated bracket members affixed to said seat portion in longitudinal alignment with said sides, each bracket member having a depending centrally disposed wedge-shaped portion constituted by a pair of inclined surfaces disposed in a fore and aft direction respectively and joined together at their lower ends, longitudinally extending bracket extensions at opposite ends of each said bracket member, leg members pivotally afiixed to said bracket members adjacent each of said'extensions and having respective fiat top surfaces engageable with the respective extensions in a firstlimiting position, said legs being swingable to a second limiting position in which their respective upper portions engage adjacent inclined surfaces on said bracket members, corresponding respective braces afiixed between the front and rear legs to connect them in front and rear pairs, at least one of said bracket members carrying a reversing leverpivotally mounted on said bracket member, respective links each pivotally attached at one end to one of said braces and at the other end to an opposite end of said lever, whereby the pivotal movement of one pair of legs will cause a corresponding opposite pivotal movement of the other pair of legs, said chair being adjustable from a higher upright position when said legs are in their first limiting positions, to a lower reclining position when said legs are in their second limiting positions.

6. An adjustable chair comprising a seat portion, a pair of elongated bracket members affixed to said seat portion in longitudinal alignment with said sides, each bracket member having a depending centrally disposed wedge-shaped portion constituted by a pair of inclined surfaces disposed in a fore and aft direction respectively and joined together at their lower ends, longitudinally extending bracket extensions at opposite ends of each end to an op osite end 8. said b'facket' 'fi'rember, leg member's pivotally affixed to said bracket members adjacent each of said extensions and having respective flat top surfaces engageable with the respective extensions in 'a first limiting position, said legs being swingable to a second limiting position in which their respective upper portions engage adjacent inclined surfaces on said bracket members, corresponding respective braces afiixed between the front and rear legs to connect them in front and rear pairs, one of said pairs being longer than the other of said pairs, 'at least one of said bracket members carrying a reversing lever pivotally mounted on said bracket member, respective links each pivotally attached at one end to one of said braces and at the other end to an opposite end of said lever, whereby the pivotal'movement of one pair of legs will cause a corresponding opposite pivotal movement of the other pair-of legs, said chair being adjustable from "a higher upright position when said legs are in their first limiting positions, to a lower reclining position when said legs are in their second limiting positions.

7. An adjustable chair comprising a seat portion, a pair of elongated bracket members afiixed to said seat portion in longitudinal alignment with said sides, each bracket member having a depending centrally disposed wedge-shaped portion constituted by a pair of inclined surfaces disposed in a fore and aft direction respectively and joined together at their lower ends, longitudinally extending bracket extensions at opposite ends of each said bracket member, leg members pivotally atiixed to said bracket members adjacent each of said extensions and having respective fiat top surfaces engageable with the respective extensions in a first limiting position, said legs being swingable to a second limiting position in which their respective upper portions engage adjacent inclined surfaces on said bracket members, corresponding respective braces affixed between the front and rear legs to connect them in front and rear pairs, said front pair of legs being longer than said rear pair, at least one of said bracket members carrying a reversing lever pivotally mounted on said bracket member, respective links each pivotally attached at one end to one of said braces and at the other end to an opposite end of said lever, whereby the pivotal movement of one pair of legs will cause a corresponding opposite pivotal movement of the other pair of legs, said chair being adjustable from a higher upright position when said legs are in their first limiting positions, to a lower reclining position when said legs are in their second limiting positions.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS France Jan. 2, 1931 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No. 2 932344 April 12', 1960 Hans L. Levi It is hereby certified that error appears in the-printed specification of the above numbered patent requiring correction and that the said Letters Patent should read as corrected'below.

Column 2.,- line 23,v strike out -'.Fig. 8 is an elevation view of the type of linkage means".

Signed and Sealed this 13th day of September 1960..

(SEAL) Attest:

KARL H. AXLINE ROBERT C. WATSON Attesting Officer Commissioner of Patents 

